Buro Happold speaking about heat networks on the grid at 5th Smart Grids and Cleanpower Conference Expo 2013 on 5 June in Cambridge, amid over 100 attendees and a massively popular exit-poll from delegates.

1. BuroHappoldBuroHappold
The role of heat networks
in future energy scenarios
Alasdair Young
Buro Happold
Energy Sector Director
5th Smart Grids & Cleanpower Conference
5 June, Cambridge
www.cir-strategy.com/events

2. BuroHappold
Heat networks:
1. Potential
2. Energy system functions
3. 4th generation heat networks
4. Possible transition
Introduction

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Heat networks – technical potential

4. BuroHappold
Future heat networks
Seasonal
storage
Diurnal storage
System
balancing
Energy sharing
Integrating
renewables
Integrating
heat pumps
Waste heat
capture
Large scale
heat capture

5. BuroHappold
Seasonal storage

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Diurnal storage

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System balancing
• Danish district heating plants use large
electric boilers for:
• Using excess, low cost wind power
• Selling grid regulation services
§ Skagen DH plant
• 4no. 4.7MWe gas fired CHP units
• 11MW electric boiler
• 4no gas boilers
• 4,150m3 thermal store (250MWh)
• 2,500 connections
Bach, P (2011) Wind Power and District Heating: New business opportunity for CHP systems: sale of
balancing services: http://pfbach.dk/firma_pfb/forgotten_flexibility_of_chp_2011_03_23.pdf
http://www.emd.dk/desire/skagen/Skagen_UK.html
30000
2000
15000
28000
5000
CHP Gas boiler Industrial heat
Energy from waste Electric boiler
Skagen DH heat generation (MWh/yr)

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Energy sharing
Building in
heating mode
Building in
cooling mode
Heat
Pump
Heat
Pump
Electricity Electricity
Heat @ 55degC Cooling @ 8degC
Cool pipe @
10degC
Warm pipe @
15degC
Cool pipe @
10degC
Warm pipe @
15degC
Building
Network
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
0% 10% 20% 30%
%
of
Annual
Heating
Delivered
DESS
Capacity
as
%
of
Peak
Capacity
Heating Cooling Design
Point
http://www.engineeringsustainability.com/

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Waste heat capture

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Carbon intensity of waste heat supply

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Integrating heat pumps/renewables

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Integrating heat pumps

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Large scale heat capture

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4th generation opportunities – reduced temperature operation
• Reduced network cost
• Reduce network losses
• Reduce overheating in corridors /
risers
• Supply hot water at 50degC not
65degC (Danish systems use
45degC)
• Improve central plant efficiencies
– Heat recovery
– Heat pump COP

15. BuroHappold
Growth and transition
Establish schemes
• Connecting buildings together
via heat networks to form the
nucleus of DE schemes
• Relatively small scale systems
New connections
• Growth in scheme size and heat
network extent as further
buildings are connected
Load diversity
• Connecting more diverse heat
loads with different demand
profiles
• Enhancing carbon reduction
and economic performance
Inter-connection
• Interconnection between
smaller schemes
Low carbon sources
• Connection of these larger
schemes to larger sources of
low/zero carbon heat
• Use of renewable fuels and
waste heat
Zero carbon transition
• In time, longer distance
transmission of heat from low
carbon power stations
• Use of DE systems for energy
storage and demand
management

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Conclusions
§ Significant opportunities for heat networks in dense urban areas
• Technical potential is high
• Economic potential function of heat demand, network cost, heat
cost
§ Heat networks can provide multiple wider energy system services
§ Value of energy system services needs to be considered
§ Integrated energy system planning required
§ Transition to zero carbon is supply constrained

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Type 1 heat network
§ 0.3-3MWe
§ CHP units in
buildings
§ ~3,000 residential
units or equivalent
§ Examples:
§ Barkantine Heat and
Power
§ King’s Cross

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§ 3-40MWe
§ Dedicated energy centre
§ 3,000-20,000 residential
units or equivalent
§ Examples:
§ Olympic Park
§ Citigen
Type 2 heat network

19. BuroHappold
§ >40MWe
§ Multiple heat sources
§ Long distance
transmission network
§ ~100,000 residential
units or equivalent
§ Examples:
§ London Thames
Gateway Heat Network
Type 3 heat network

20. BuroHappold
Type 4 heat networks
§ >250MWth
§ Zero carbon heat
source
§ Very long distance
transmission network
§ Links multiple Type 2
and Type 3 systems
§ Examples:
§ Vienna
§ Link to Thames Estuary
CCS cluster